


dropped stitch

by monokowritesstuff



Category: Persona 4
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Knitting, Non-Binary Shirogane Naoto, Other, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:21:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27500080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/monokowritesstuff/pseuds/monokowritesstuff
Summary: In which Naoto learns the art of a craft.
Relationships: Shirogane Naoto/Tatsumi Kanji
Comments: 4
Kudos: 27





	dropped stitch

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ChalkDrawn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChalkDrawn/gifts).



> Heyooo! This is a Drabble for a friend’s birthday. To the friend this is for, I hope you like it :> String Theory will update twice next Sunday because I missed last week’s update due to me being busy with college shit!

“Cast on… wh… what?”

In hindsight, they should have just asked for help. Naoto figured that with how quickly Kanji did it, they could pick up a pair of his needles and go to town, making him a nice little scarf for Christmas in no time at all.

They hadn’t anticipated all the confusing knitting lingo to come and bite them in the ass.

Kanji made it look so easy, cranking out rows and rows and rows of stitches without breaking the flow of teatime conversation. The quiet  _ click clack  _ of his needles always punctuated his words quite nicely, leaving Naoto to watch in quiet awe as he knitted yet another shawl for Yukiko and Chie or another hat to send off to Yosuke and Yū out in the city. Not to mention the tiny bunny and cat plushies he’d give them at random to accessorize their work phone with.

Now, sitting at the foot of their bed and surrounded by all kinds of books and yarns, Naoto regretted not watching Kanji more closely. Their ‘scarf’ was barely even a square of fabric, and they had dropped several stitches in trying to grapple with the small needles they had picked out. Several failed starts were littered around them, some barely making it past the slip knot stage. Where were they going wrong? Naoto let out a small groan of frustration and set the needles down, leaning against their bed frame and letting their hat ride up over their eyes. They couldn’t just buy Kanji a scarf. It wouldn’t be the same. They know full well he’d appreciate it, but in their own mind they found it disrespectful. Either they had to get this, or they’d have to find a new present for Kanji.

“Naodoll? Have you seen my needles?” Kanji called from somewhere in the house, making Naoto’s heart drop. Had he really caught on that quickly? “I can’t find ‘em anywhere.”

“N-No! Did you check downstairs?” they called back, hastily trying to stow the needles with their failure of a scarf under the bed. 

“Yeah, I tore the whole place up looking for them and— Naoto?”

Much to their utmost delight, Kanji had burst into the room without knocking, catching them red handed in the act. Naoto felt themselves turn beet red, and defeatedly held out the needles to him, accepting their fate with a hung head. 

“Is this a scarf?” Kanji held it in his hands with a sort of quiet reverence, his own cheeks dusted a very light pink. “Did… did you make this, Naoto?”

“I tried, yes,” they said with a sigh, not able to meet his gaze completely. “I thought if I just watched you I’d be able to do it, but… I couldn’t. It was supposed to be your Christmas present.”

“It’s a good start.” he beckoned them forward a bit, then sat behind them on the ground, pushing the needles back into their hands with a little smile. “Next time, start with bigger needles. They’re easier to use for beginners. Y’know how to cast on, right?”

“Kind of. It always gets really sloppy when I try.”

Saying nothing, Kanji slipped his hands over Naoto’s, adjusting their grip around the needles and putting their fingers in just the right spots. Feeling him so close made their heart start pounding and made their face warmer than the sun. It was… nice. Really, really nice.

“So to cast on, you’ll want to move your fingers like this to cast the stitch onto the needles...” Kanji’s voice was barely more audible than a whisper and his touch was feather light, leaving Naoto dizzy in the wake of it. “And then, you’ll want to knit front and back, like this, Naodoll.”

“Oh, I think I dropped a stitch. Sorry.” 

“That’s okay. To fix that, you do this, and…”

They sat like that for quite some time, with Naoto eventually getting the hang of things and falling into a quiet rhythm under the watchful gaze of Kanji. After a time, they leaned into Kanji fully, letting themselves melt into his warmth with a happy sigh.

“You’re a quick learner, Naodoll.” he finally let go of their hands, moving them down to Naoto’s waist and pulling them closer into a small hug. “I’m really proud.”

“I… thank you. And thank you for teaching me… even if this was supposed to be a surprise,” they smiled and shook their head, leaning up to plant a small kiss on his jawline. “If you don’t mind… Can you teach me more, someday? I actually really like knitting. It’s calming.”

“Of course I can, Naoto. All you have to do is ask.”

They let their needles come to a rest, smiling all the while. Maybe they wouldn’t need the scarf, with how warm they felt. Naoto hoped Kanji felt the same way.


End file.
